Public Trust Dossier · New Mexico
The “Barren Alkali Flat” That Pays for Schools
Section 32, Township 24 South, Range 35 East, New Mexico Principal Meridian · Lea County, Delaware/Permian Basin
Loading the BLM survey grid…
Split-estate stack
| Surface | Grazing lease; cattle still graze the scrub. Pennies per acre for decades. |
|---|---|
| Minerals | Retained by the state, over thick Permian oil and gas zones; royalties go to the Land Grant Permanent Fund. |
| Leases | Oil, gas and saltwater-disposal leases (NMSLO layers, to pull). |
Custody timeline
| 1898 | Ferguson Act grants school sections. |
|---|---|
| 1910 | Enabling Act: four sections per township; sale only at appraised value by competitive bid. |
| Survey | GLO surveyors record “barren alkali and caliche flats, scant grass, destitute of timber or water.” |
| Decades | Surface grazing lease yields pennies per acre. |
| Today | Horizontal wellbores cross the section; royalties flow to the Land Grant Permanent Fund. |
Fiduciary ledger
| Surface grazing | Pennies per acre |
|---|---|
| Retained mineral estate | Tens of millions of dollars in royalties for schools (our brief; to be checked against NMSLO records) |
| The lesson | Never sell the mineral estate |
Evidence vault
- Original GLO survey field notes TO PULL
- 1910 Enabling Act clear list TO PULL
- NMSLO surface lease layer TO PULL
- NMSLO oil & gas well and royalty layer TO PULL
- BLM CadNSDI section outline LIVE ON THE MAP
Work in progress: the story above comes from our research brief. The original records in the vault are being pulled and checked now, and each line will link to its scan.
Look it up yourself: BLM General Land Office Records · BLM CadNSDI